US 2010/0149366 A1Published application

Photoelectric conversion device, imaging system, and photoelectric conversion device driving method

AssigneeCanon Kabushiki Kaisha

InventorsTomoyuki Noda, Masaru Fujimura

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Abstract

A photoelectric conversion device comprises a plurality of pixels, a driving supplemental element, a signal line to which the plurality of pixels and the driving supplemental element are connected, a driving unit which drives the plurality of pixels and the driving supplemental element, and an output circuit which processes a signal output to the signal line from a readout pixel selected by the driving unit and outputs the processed signal, each of the plurality of pixels including a first charge-voltage converter, a first reset unit which resets the first charge-voltage converter, and a first output unit which outputs a signal corresponding to a voltage of the first charge-voltage converter, the driving supplemental element including a second charge-voltage converter, a second reset unit which resets the second charge-voltage converter, and a second output unit which outputs a signal corresponding to a voltage of the second charge-voltage converter.

Claims17

Dependent claims

A photoelectric conversion device comprising:

a plurality of pixels;
a driving supplemental element;
a signal line to which the plurality of pixels and the driving supplemental element are connected;
a driving unit which drives the plurality of pixels and the driving supplemental element;
and
an output circuit which processes a signal output to the signal line from a readout pixel selected by the driving unit and outputs the processed signal,
each of the plurality of pixels including:
a first charge-voltage converter;
a first reset unit which resets the first charge-voltage converter;
and
a first output unit which outputs a signal corresponding to a voltage of the first charge-voltage converter,
the driving supplemental element including:
a second charge-voltage converter;
a second reset unit which resets the second charge-voltage converter;
and
a second output unit which outputs a signal corresponding to a voltage of the second charge-voltage converter,
wherein the driving unit drives the plurality of pixels and the driving supplemental element to, during a first period which is in a selection period for selecting the readout pixel, in the readout pixel, reset the first charge-voltage converter by the first reset unit and then output a noise signal corresponding to the voltage of the first charge-voltage converter from the first output unit to the signal line, and in the driving supplemental element, reset the second charge-voltage converter by the second reset unit and then output a noise signal corresponding to the voltage of the second charge-voltage converter from the second output unit to the signal line, and in a second period which follows the first period and which is in the selection period, stop output of the noise signal to the signal line from the second output unit in the driving supplemental element, and
the noise signal output to the signal line from the first output unit in the readout pixel is transferred to the output circuit in the second period.

15 more elements

A method of driving a photoelectric conversion device including a plurality of pixels, a driving supplemental element, a signal line to which the plurality of pixels and the driving supplemental element are connected, and an output circuit which processes a signal output to the signal line from a readout pixel selected from the plurality of pixels to read out a signal and outputs the processed signal,

each of the plurality of pixels including:
a first charge-voltage converter;
a first reset unit which resets the first charge-voltage converter;
and
a first output unit which outputs a signal corresponding to a voltage of the first charge-voltage converter,
the driving supplemental element including:
a second charge-voltage converter;
a second reset unit which resets the second charge-voltage converter;
and
a second output unit which outputs a signal corresponding to a voltage of the second charge-voltage converter,
the driving method comprising:
a first step of driving the plurality of pixels and the driving supplemental element to, in the readout pixel, reset the first charge-voltage converter by the first reset unit and then output a noise signal corresponding to the voltage of the first charge-voltage converter from the first output unit to the signal line, and in the driving supplemental element, reset the second charge-voltage converter by the second reset unit and then output a noise signal corresponding to the voltage of the second charge-voltage converter from the second output unit to the signal line;
and
a second step of driving the driving supplemental element to stop output of the noise signal to the signal line from the second output unit in the driving supplemental element after the first step,
wherein in the second step, the noise signal output to the signal line from the first output unit in the readout pixel is transferred to the output circuit.

12 more elements

Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.